A tablet splitting apparatus and a tablet cutting blade replacement jig are known, which are configured to allow simple and easy attachment and detachment of tablet cutting blades (see, for example, PTL 1). In order to cut a tablet, this conventional tablet splitting apparatus includes: a falling tablet guiding member formed from a plate-shaped body and having a groove-shaped tablet falling path extending from its upper end to its lower end; receiving members that temporarily hold a tablet falling through the tablet falling path and to be split when the path is closed and opened, the tablet being held at a cutting position partway down the tablet falling path; a cutting mechanism for cutting the tablet by moving blade moving members with tablet cutting blades attached thereto toward the cutting position; and a housing that accommodates the falling tablet guiding member, the receiving members, and the cutting mechanism.
In this tablet splitting apparatus, an opening through which the falling tablet guiding member and the tablet cutting blades can pass is formed in the housing in order to facilitate attachment and detachment of the tablet cutting blades. Engaging edges of support members that are engaged with the falling tablet guiding member to support the falling tablet guiding member are formed immediately inside the opening. In the above tablet splitting apparatus, the falling tablet guiding member is attached to or detached from the tablet splitting apparatus by sliding the falling tablet guiding member while it is engaged with the support members to thereby insert the falling tablet guiding member into the housing through the opening or withdraw the falling tablet guiding member from the housing through the opening.
The tablet cutting blades are slidingly engaged with and disengaged from the blade moving members, and the opening is located ahead of the blade moving members in the direction of sliding.
The tablet cutting blades are inserted into the housing through the opening and then slidingly engaged with the blade moving members. The sliding direction of the falling tablet guiding member is parallel to the sliding direction of the blades.
The tablet cutting blade replacement jig is temporarily inserted into and withdrawn from, i.e., attached to and detached from, the support members in place of the falling tablet guiding member when the tablet cutting blades are attached to or detached from the blade moving members. An attachment jig for attaching the tablet cutting blades to the tablet splitting apparatus and a detachment jig for detaching the tablet cutting blades from the tablet splitting apparatus are collectively referred to as tablet cutting blade replacement jigs. Each of the attachment jig and the detachment jig includes: a plate-shaped jig main body that can be slidingly engaged with and disengaged from the support members in place of the falling tablet guiding member; and blade holders that are attached to the jig main body and can hold the tablet cutting blades. When the jig main body is engaged with the support members, the detachment jig is in a capture state in which the tablet cutting blades attached to the blade moving members are captured by the blade holders. In the capture state, when the jig main body is disengaged from the support members, the tablet cutting blades are detached from the blade moving members.
When the jig main body is engaged with the support members with the tablet cutting blades held by the blade holders, the attachment jig assumes an attachment state in which the tablet cutting blades are engaged with and attached to the blade moving members. When the jig main body in the attachment state is disengaged from the support members, the blades are detached from the blade holders.
The use of these two tablet cutting blade replacement jigs allows, for example, replacement of the tablet cutting blades of the tablet splitting apparatus to be performed simply, easily, and safely by insertion and withdrawal of the plate-shaped body that is easier to hand-hold than the tablet cutting blades.